Re:Zero - Reincarnated on a Co-op Route

Beep... beep... beep...

Kaoru opened his eyes slowly, feeling the weight of routine falling on him like a slab. The alarm continued to beep, insistent, as if mocking his tiredness.

"I feel like I'm living déjà vu sometimes," he mumbled as he got out of bed, still half asleep.

Beep... beep...

"Shut up already."

He reached up and turned off the alarm on his phone. The screen showed the time: 5:30 A.M. And at the bottom, in a small icon, a number that always gave him some peace of mind: 87% battery.

"Dad knew what he was doing when he bought me this phone," he thought as he set it down on the nightstand.

"It looks like it could last even months without shutting down if I don't use it. I should figure out a way to charge it when I need it, though..."

Kaoru sat on the edge of the bed for a few more seconds, stretching his arms out and letting the cool morning air clear his head a bit. He looked at the device once more and sighed.

"Although, being honest, I'd rather this world never get to see some industrial revolution and all that shit. So I'll never sell this device."

With a mechanical motion, he began to put the training weights on each limb. They were thin, barely visible, but the spell on them made them much heavier than they looked. He adjusted the straps carefully, making sure they didn't come loose.

"Mmmm... how does it work to change the weight on them?" he asked himself, turning his wrist slightly to activate the spell.

"Shift to 10 kg."

Suddenly, his limbs seemed to turn to stone. His arms and legs tensed under the sudden weight, and he had to lean against the wall to keep from losing his balance. He was now carrying 10 kg per limb, 40 in all.

"Great," he sighed, uncomfortably, as he got used to the extra weight. He finished putting on the weights and put on his servant's suit, carefully adjusting it so that the weights were hidden under his sleeves and pants. Finally, he left his humble room.

As he walked through the corridors of the mansion, he noticed how the echo of his footsteps seemed heavier than usual, echoing against the walls decorated with gilded pictures and chandeliers. He looked up to the high ceiling, where the chandeliers hung like trapped stars.

"I really miss the guest bedroom... But I've made up my mind," he thought, pursing his lips as he moved forward.

---

Kaoru walked through the main hall, where the great marble pillars stood like sentinels and the two curved staircases led to the upper floor. The place had always seemed intimidating to him, even after all this time. It was too elegant, too perfect, as if designed to remind him that he didn't belong there.

He stepped out into the garden, where the cool morning air greeted him with a gentle slap on the face. The grass was damp with dew, and the scent of freshly opened flowers filled the air. He sat on the ground, letting the tranquility of the place envelop him.

"I have an hour and a few minutes to spare to practice my control over my mana gate," he muttered to himself, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He concentrated his energy, trying to feel the flow of mana from his Od. It was something he hadn't quite mastered yet, but he knew he had to get better if he wanted to survive.

After a few minutes, his mind became distracted. He looked around, searching for someone. He frowned.

"Where the fuck is Subaru? I told him to come early... Did he fall asleep?"

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. His body tensed instinctively, and he turned his head quickly.

"Hey, you know I wouldn't let you down like that," Subaru said, sketching a confident smile.

Kaoru relaxed, rolling her eyes. "You'll give someone a heart attack if you keep coming up from behind and touching people."

"I was hoping to," Subaru joked, laughing softly.

"Ya, and what's in it for you with me dead?" replied Kaoru with a sideways grin.

"That you don't steal my Emilia."

"I would never steal Emilia from you, bro."

"Oh yeah? Since I'm the one who remembers everything, I know damn well you liked her, bro."

"Well, she's the hottest chick in this place, honestly. It's only natural for me to like her."

"Dude, don't you have man-to-man codes? Stealing your best friend's girl, almost brother, is ratty," Subaru said, with a mixture of jest and warning.

Kaoru held up his hands in surrender. "I'm fixating more on Rem and Ram, you know. Don't worry about it; I'm not a rat."

Subaru grinned mischievously. "I heard you had a little mishap with Ram last night, right?"

"What?" said Kaoru, frowning.

"And that she saw your big friend down there, didn't she?" Subaru added, laughing loudly.

Kaoru felt his face heat up. "She told you about it.?!"

"Since I was studying with her last night, well, she blurted out some comments about what happened."

Kaoru sighed, bringing a hand to his face. "Great, just great..."

---

Quick Flashback - Subaru Bedroom

The room was quiet, with a dim lamp illuminating the books and notebook scattered on the table. Subaru was sitting in front of Ram, trying to focus on practicing writing and getting better at it. His concentration, however, was abruptly broken by Ram's next words.

"Last night Kaoru showed me his cock and asked me if I wanted to touch it."

Subaru dropped the scroll in his hands. His jaw dropped open as if he had heard the world's greatest blasphemy.

"What?!" he exclaimed as he looked at Ram with a mixture of disbelief and panic.

Ram, for her part, did not seem perturbed. She sat with her back straight, her expression serene as if she were commenting on the weather. However, her eyes sparkled with a glint that Subaru failed to notice.

"It was very large, veiny, and very pale. Yuck. For a moment there I thought he would do something to me," Ram said, letting out a sigh.

Subaru felt a shiver run down his back. "Are you sure he said that!?"

"Not really," Ram replied, cocking her head slightly as a small smirk tugged at her lips. "But I know he wanted it on his insides. Just by looking at those slanted eyes and that gaze, it's clear he's a perv. Just like you, Barusu."

"Hey!" protested Subaru, though his face was already completely red. "Leave me out of it!"

As he tried to defend his honor, Subaru couldn't help a treacherous stream of thoughts that assaulted him from the depths of his insecurity.

"Kaoru... is it so much bigger than me?"

He thought, feeling an internal storm begin to form in his head. Unintentionally, his eyes went unfocused, staring into the void as his mind navigated through a sea of doubt.

Ram, who had been watching him silently, snapped his fingers in front of his face. "Don't get distracted, Barusu. Although you already know much of the I-Glyphs, you still need more practice."

Subaru shook his head quickly, trying to erase any unwanted thoughts. "Yes, of course! I'm focused, I promise."

"I doubt it," Ram said coolly, though his lips showed a slight curve, as if she enjoyed the chaos she had just sown in Subaru's mind.

End of Flashback

---

Kaoru changed the subject, his face becoming more serious. "Speaking of Rem... Sometimes you surprise me. You forgave rather quickly."

"In my case, I said I'd forgive her, but here in a few months... I'm still remembering how she ripped my guts open. It's awkward, you know, because, in theory, nothing happened, so I'm the one acting weird."

"I hear you," Subaru said. "But part of me forgiving them is that I have you and Emilia to keep me sane."

"Maybe I would have opted for some more vindictive path if both of you weren't with me, and who knows what would have happened."

"You got damn creepy all of a sudden, didn't you?" Kaoru said with a light laugh, trying to lighten the mood.

"Anyway, we're wasting a lot of time with all this not-productive talk," Kaoru said, standing up. "There's a clear problem here: we're weak. No talent, no skills."

"I know that all too well," Subaru replied, rolling up one sleeve to reveal the thin dumbbell with the spell on its wrist.

"Good"

"I'll teach you how to use your mana gate. I may not be the best teacher, but we'll both be learning," Kaoru said as he sat on the grass, a notebook in his lap.

The morning breeze lightly ruffled the pages of the notebook as Kaoru searched through his notes. It took him a few seconds to find the theories and practices he had jotted down, but he finally stopped on a specific page, nodding to himself.

"First, what you must do is visualize the mana inside your body. More precisely, inside your Od, which is your soul. Do you understand?" Kaoru asked, looking at him seriously.

"I understand," Subaru answered with determination, sitting down across from him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to concentrate. Slowly, he became immersed in that sensation inside his body: the flow of mana, invisible but present. When he managed to visualize it, he realized that it felt like a dense, gaseous fog, filling every corner of his being.

"Do you see it?" asked Kaoru, watching him closely.

"I see it," Subaru replied, still with his eyes closed.

"Good. The next step is to start locating your magic door inside that place," Kaoru indicated, turning his attention back to his notebook.

Subaru nodded and continued to concentrate. In his mind, the gaseous mana seemed to surround something more solid, something more defined. After a few seconds, he found it: his magic door. It was like a sealed opening inside, surrounded by that thick fog. However, something disturbed him.

"I can see it, but it's covered with a lot of mana. It looks dangerous to open it like this."

Kaoru nodded, satisfied with Subaru's observation. "Try to manipulate the mana slowly. Don't rush or get desperate. It's important to move it calmly before doing anything."

As Subaru followed his directions, Kaoru also began to practice his own mana control. He closed his eyes and visualized his Od, concentrating on the flow of energy within it. He began to manipulate the mana, separating it into small fragments and moving it carefully from place to place. He experimented with speed, trying to direct it in more precise ways.

The two trained in silence for an hour. The garden was quiet, save for the faint sound of the wind and the occasional song of a bird. Subaru, his face tense, was sweating slightly as he continued to practice. Next to him, Kaoru was immersed in his own training, but with an additional idea in mind.

Kaoru pulled a dagger from his back pocket. Sunlight reflected off the blade as he held it tightly. Without hesitation, he slashed his arm, letting a thin trickle of blood begin to flow. He gritted his teeth as he felt the sting of the cut, but he didn't let the pain distract him.

"Now then... If I can just manage to get myself healed, things will be a lot easier from now on," he muttered to himself.

He closed his eyes and opened his magic door slightly. In his mind, he visualized the water mana, his magic element, flowing into the wound on his arm. He imagined how the healing energy closed the wound and soothed the pain.

However, nothing happened at first. The blood continued to flow, which broke his concentration. Kaoru's teeth clenched as he muttered through his teeth

"Shit... Come on..."

Finally, a faint sphere-shaped light began to emanate from his other hand. It was faint, but it was there.

"Okay, okay..."

He said quietly, encouraging himself.

Kaoru placed his hand over the wound, focusing the mana on the cut. Slowly, the water mana began to close the wound, sealing it little by little. The pain gradually subsided, and after a few minutes, the arm was completely healed. However, the process had been slow and exhausting.

"Definitely sucks," he muttered to himself, looking at the dried blood on his skin. "It'll take a lot more training..."

Meanwhile, Subaru opened his eyes and let out a deep sigh. His forehead was covered in sweat, but a smile crossed his face. He had managed to manipulate the mana within him, moving it fluidly and familiarizing himself with his magic gate. He even managed to open it slightly, storing mana in his Od before successfully closing it.

"I did it," Subaru said excitedly, looking at Kaoru. "You're a good teacher."

Kaoru slowly stood up, wiping her hands on her pants. "I'm glad you said that."

However, Subaru noticed something strange on the grass. "Hey... what's with that blood on the grass?"

"Oh, I cut my wrist on purpose," Kaoru replied casually.

Subaru looked at him with concern.

"I understand that things are difficult, but don't give up now, Kaoru-kun."

Kaoru rolled his eyes.

"I wasn't planning to commit suicide, you idiot. As you know, I'm fortunate enough to have an affinity for the Yin element and the Water element. I wanted to test if I could heal myself with my magic."

Subaru sighed, a little relieved but still worried. "It's just that there was a lot of blood... I got worried. How's your wrist?"

Kaoru showed him his left wrist. The wound had completely disappeared, leaving only traces of dried blood.

"What did you cut yourself with? Do you always carry your daggers with you?" asked Subaru, still unable to fully relax.

"You know I do. You never know what might happen. They're for self-defense, obviously."

Subaru narrowed his eyes, doubtful. "They were the daggers you stole from that fool of a trio of fools in the capital, weren't they?"

Kaoru let out a small laugh. "Yes. I wonder what they're up to now."

---

The soft crunching of gravel under Ram's footsteps interrupted the tranquility of the garden.

"Good morning, Kaoru-kun, Subaru-kun. We have a lot of work to do today," Ram said in his usual authoritative tone, albeit with a slight air of nonchalance.

Subaru stretched with a yawn. "Work?

Ram continued, "Let's go to the kitchen. Rem is already waiting."

Kaoru, who had been wiping his hands with a handkerchief, tensed slightly at hearing that. Ram, with his keen perception, was quick to notice.

"Something wrong, Kaoru?" he asked, tilting his head slightly as he stared at him.

"Nothing really. Come on..." replied Kaoru quickly, avoiding her gaze as he stood up.

Ram arched an eyebrow, wary, but didn't insist. "Hmph. Then hurry up."

Without further words, the three began walking towards the mansion.

---

When they arrived at the spacious kitchen, the smell of fresh ingredients already filled the air.

Rem was there, organizing the utensils with a calm smile. Seeing them enter, she bowed slightly in greeting.

"Good morning, Nee-sama. Good morning, Kaoru-kun, Subaru-kun," she said in a soft voice.

"Good morning, Rem," Subaru and Kaoru replied in unison.

Rem clasped her hands together in front of her, with a slight gleam of excitement in her eyes.

"Today we will prepare breakfast for Mr. Roswaal. I was thinking something simple—how about a plate of sautéed potatoes with scrambled eggs, freshly baked bread, and some fresh salad?"

"Sounds delicious," Subaru said, already picturing the feast in his head. "What do we do first?"

Ram took the floor, already organizing the activity like a general on a battlefield.

"Kaoru, you and I will cut the potatoes. Subaru, help Rem prepare the other ingredients. And do everything quickly; we don't want Mr. Roswaal to wake up hungry and cranky."

"Understood," the three said in chorus, getting to work.

---

Kaoru stood next to Ram at the work table, picking up a knife and a potato. Although he was trying to concentrate, he couldn't help but notice how Ram was watching him from the corner of her eye, as if assessing his every move. The first attempt at peeling a potato turned out to be... disastrous. More than half of the potato ended up wasted.

"Not bad, Kaoru. I give you a 3 out of 10 in peeling potatoes," Ram commented in her typical sarcastic tone, raising an eyebrow as she looked at the mess on her cutting board.

Kaoru smiled wryly as he picked up the potato scraps. "You flatter me. I was expecting a 1.5, at best."

"Your optimism is admirable...and pitiful at the same time," Ram replied, resuming her work with enviable precision. In mere seconds, another perfectly peeled and cut potato rested on his board.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the kitchen, Subaru was busy helping Rem with the salad greens. Or at least, he was trying to do so.

"Subaru-kun, be careful when cutting the tomatoes. If you press too hard, they'll get squashed," Rem explained gently, pointing to the squashed pulp already overflowing from one of the tomatoes.

Subaru let out a nervous laugh. "Sorry, sorry."

"Please concentrate on cutting the tomatoes properly, Subaru-kun," Rem replied, tilting her head with a small smile. She then began to whisk the eggs for the scrambled eggs in quick, fluid motions.

"How do you manage to make it all look so easy?" asked Subaru, watching her admiringly.

"It's a matter of practice. And patience," Rem replied calmly. "Something you should work on more, Subaru-kun."

"Hey, that was a low blow!" said Subaru, but he couldn't help but laugh as he turned his attention back to the tomatoes.

---

On Kaoru and Ram's side, work was also progressing, albeit at a slower pace.

"Kaoru-kun, if you keep wasting potatoes like this, we'll have to send you to work in the fields to learn to value them more"

"How about you better give me a crash class in potato peeling? I promise to pay attention," Kaoru replied with a smile that was trying to be charming.

Ram stared at him for a few seconds before replying.

"Hmph. I don't think you're capable of learning even that."

"It's good to know that you trust me so much," Kaoru said sarcastically as he tried, without much success, to improve his technique.

---

Finally, after much work, breakfast was ready. The sautéed potatoes shone with perfect browning, the scrambled eggs were fluffy, the fresh salad had vibrant colors, and the freshly baked bread filled the kitchen with its warm aroma.

"Let's serve the food in the main dining room. Mr. Roswaal will want to eat after his precious sleep," Ram said, wiping her hands with a cloth.

Kaoru sighed, looking at the cut potatoes on her board. "Well, I guess I didn't do too bad... All the credit goes to you guys, though."

"A 3 out of 10 is still a 3 out of 10, Kaoru-kun. Don't get too excited," Ram said as she picked up a tray with the plates.

Rem, for his part, smiled softly. "You did well, Kaoru-kun. We're all learning."

"Thanks, Rem. At least someone gives me some credit," Kaoru replied with a smile.

Then, he took another tray and followed the sisters into the dining room, with Subaru behind them, carrying the bread and drinks.